User blog comment:Anobi/Alternate Timeline Theory/@comment-188.92.0.194-20140812085349

It's not "only" a fan rumor. http://www.capcom-unity.com/carbo/blog/2009/04/28/captivate_2009__devil_may_cry_news_no_new_game_unfortunately (which is a newer material than this post that LegionZero is shoving into everyone who disagrees, also, this article was released AFTER the game, not before it, which means it has finalized info).

Age is hardly an issue - Dante seems to be way older in the first and the fourth game than he is in the third, it's not implausible for ten years to pass between 3 and 1, and another 7-8 between 1 and 4 (animated series alone had quite a lot of events which spanned at least several months).

The games hint at the connections quite a lot, Vergil claims to NEED more power, and he needs the power of Sparda, to be like his father - a protector of mankind. Nero also has a degree of control over Yamato, and unlike Dante, it hasn't been stated that he can instantly master any weapon he lays his hands on. Dante leaves the katana to Nero, even though he stated before that "it's gotta stay in the family". It also explains why Nero has a weaker Devil Trigger (no transformation) - he's a quarter-blood, not half-blood.

It is possible that Vergil fell in love with a human woman before the events of DMC 3, lost her (to demons, as was with Eva?), left Nero at the orphanage (so Nero would've been safer without any link to Vergil or Dante, and so Vergil could return for him later, and if he didn't, at least the kid would've been cared for), and started on his quest for power of Sparda.